In many mining countries such as Chile and Peru, the systems for extracting ore lie at high altitudes of 2000 m to 5000 m. In these systems, the ore, after initial processing, is transported further as aqueous sludge in line systems to plants in which the suspended ore, also called ore pulp, is subsequently processed. During this initial processing, the ore is concentrated as a rule. Thus, for example, copper ore in natural deposits has a metal content of 0.5% to 3%. For the transport to the plants for the subsequent processing, for example smelting plants, the copper ore is concentrated to values of 30% to 50% during the initial processing in concentrator plants which are located in the vicinity of the mine. The plants for the subsequent processing are as a rule not located in the vicinity of the mine but rather at sea level at home or abroad, and therefore the concentrate in this case has to be shipped and exported. What are known as “slurry pipelines” are being increasingly used in order to transport the concentrate to the smelting plants or to the harbor, in which slurry pipelines the concentrate, the ore pulp (slurry), which is enriched with water for the transport, flows from the mine located at a high altitude to the coast. More than six slurry pipelines of this kind are in operation in Chile, the length of which is on average 170 km and which overcome an average difference in altitude of 3000 m with an average transport capacity of 2.5 million tons per year.